The hotel adultery drama had been trending on Weibo for two whole days, as it was full of juicy details that never got old.
Previously disgraced cheating men seemed pitiful, but compared to Zong Chun now, they didn't seem so unfortunate anymore. After all, they only ruined their reputation, while Zong Chun not only destroyed his name but also had a physical disability, wore a green hat (was cuckolded), and had his wife stolen...
[In a word, miserable~]
In the Qin family living room, the whole family was gathered together. Except for little Qin Xi, everyone else had developed a new family habit of gossiping over tea and meals. Chatting daily left them feeling refreshed and energized.
Even Qin Xian would occasionally join in when he got off work early.
Hearing Ji Fei's schadenfreude and sarcastic comment about Zong Chun's misery, Qin Xian's lips curled into a smile, and others laughed as well.
It seemed... ever since Ji Fei had changed, the whole family spent more time laughing together.
"I just saw the latest news, Mrs. Zong has officially announced the divorce and will be sending Zong Chun a lawyer's letter to sue him," Qin Rong excitedly reported. "Zong Chun has already been kicked out of the house."
"Looks like the truth has come out," Qin's Mom said. "She must be furious enough not to care about her reputation anymore."
Qin's Father added, "Zong Chun will not only leave empty-handed but probably have to pay compensation too. He's truly failed in both career and family now."
"Paparazzi have caught Zong Siqi living in Mrs. Zong's villa," Qin Zhao said incredulously. "I can't believe he actually succeeded in taking over. Is Mrs. Zong still... Mrs. Zong?"
Everyone burst out laughing.
Qin Yan shook her head, "After being hurt so badly by a man, how can she still trust men?"
"Maybe she doesn't trust, but she wants to enjoy life now. After all, she has money... It's just a shame that what they did to Yu Rouyin will be left unresolved," Ji Fei said regretfully.
Everyone felt it was a pity. They had thought that perhaps drug traces could be detected from the coffee stains on the clothes, but it turned out there were no drugs in the coffee to begin with. The person who was supposed to drug someone ended up being the victim instead. What else could be said?
Qin Xian suddenly spoke up, "Mrs. Zong's cousin complained at the company that her family on both sides are planning to remove her from the family registry because of the scandals she caused online affecting their family businesses. Since she doesn't work herself, in the future... I'm afraid she won't have much money to squander."
Mrs. Zong's cousin was that director at Qin Corporation, so what he said must be true gossip.
However, the Qin family members all looked at Qin Xian in astonishment. Who could have imagined that the man who was always so serious as the boss at the company would actually listen to someone's private complaints and bring the news back to gossip with them?
This was... so unlike 'Qin Xian'.
But when they turned to see Ji Fei's eyes light up upon hearing this news, even reaching out to tug at Qin Xian's arm... the Qin family members instantly gave Qin Xian knowing looks.
So, was this some new way of pleasing his wife?
In the past, Qin's parents had been quite hopeless about the couple's relationship, but now they found ways to enjoy their sweet moments every day.
"Really?" Ji Fei asked with great interest written all over her face.
Qin Xian nodded and explained in detail.
Ji Fei laughed outright. "The bad things you do will always come back to bite you in some way."
One could imagine what would happen in the future when Mrs. Zong had no money. And what about Zong Siqi? He had already burned all his career bridges with this expose, seducing his aunt and becoming infamous. What kind of future could he possibly have?
"Teacher Yu has finally seen the light at the end of the tunnel. No one will try to harm her anymore," Qin Rong said happily.
Everyone smiled.
But Qin Yan suddenly remembered something and asked, "Oh right, Fei Fei, Third Brother, how will your show continue now?"
Ji Fei had never cared about these things. Work was something to be delayed if possible, ignored if feasible. Being asked this question, she also looked towards Qin Zhao.
"Yu Rouyin and Zong Chun's group is definitely out," Qin Zhao said.
Ji Fei could already imagine that her reputation must be quite precarious now, no wonder her private messages had increased lately.
Qin Zhao continued, "Yu Rouyin is still our studio's artist, so she'll continue as a supporting performer on our stage."
Ji Fei raised her hand and said, "Actually, I can quit, and let Yu Rouyin perform on stage with you. Didn't Sister Pei want to cultivate her properly?"
But Qin Zhao replied, "Do you want to see the director and producer hanging themselves outside your door in the middle of the night?"
The whole family burst out laughing.
Ji Fei said innocently, "I thought their endurance was quite strong."
Qin Zhao explained, "The previous groups disappeared because the show didn't dare use them anymore, fearing public condemnation. They were willing to quit, so naturally their contracts were terminated. But you don't have any problems, so if you want to quit, you'll have to pay a penalty for breach of contract."
"Pay money?!"
The whole family looked at Ji Fei with amusement and exasperation.
Qin Xian, however, said directly to Ji Fei, "If you really don't want to participate, I'll pay the penalty fee."
Ji Fei: "Never mind, I'll participate after all."
[Pay money! No matter whose money it is, that's absolutely unacceptable! It's even more painful than not making money!]
Qin Zhao said wearily, "There's only one episode left, just participate casually and it'll be over. We were in the spotlight too much before, so ending quietly is fine too. If any more problems arise, I suspect even Nitroglycerin pills won't be enough for the director and producers."
Clearly, the director and producers had complained quite a bit, both explicitly and implicitly.
"Only one episode left?" Ji Fei asked, puzzled. They had originally signed for a whole season.
"Yes, there are only two teams left, and they can't come up with any more competition formats. No one dares to come as a guest on the show anymore, so the director and producers have given up and announced that the next episode will be the last one. The empty time slots will be given to other shows," Qin Zhao explained.
Ji Fei immediately smiled.
[One of life's joys is getting paid the same amount for less work time.]
"So that means only your group will be doing the round-robin competition," Qin's Father said with a laugh. "Looks like Fei Fei will be testing every combination."
Qin's Mom said, "I'm quite familiar with the last group. When I was young, I loved Lu Fei's dramas. She's a national treasure-level actress, who hasn't seen her dramas all over the streets? And she's paired with Sun Man, her son's ex-girlfriend, right? I wonder how they'll get along?"
"Actually, there were people online betting that the former mother-in-law and daughter-in-law group would definitely forfeit the competition," Qin Rong said.
Qin Yan: "If they forfeit, it would prove they're afraid to face Fei Fei and Third Brother. The netizens probably wouldn't let them off the hook."
Qin Zhao nodded and said, "The producer has talked to them, and they didn't express any intention to quit. Gao Hao and Pei Mingxuan also said they don't have any major issues. Besides, Teacher Lu has some official background, so she should be able to restrain herself well, except for her criticized 'evil mother-in-law' image."
"I've read reports before that she became a widow at a young age and has always relied on her son," Qin's Mom said.
"So her son is a mama's boy? And the mother always interferes with her son's girlfriends?" Qin Yan asked.
Qin Zhao said, "That's what they say in the industry."
[...You could say that, I suppose.]
Everyone was stunned. This obviously hesitant tone, along with those omitted ellipses, proved that completely different information was hidden beneath the surface.
